I got you
by yesimadramaqueen
Summary: This is after Nightfalling. Inara and Simon want to break up Mal and River. Will their love survive? Will THEY survive?
1. Chapter 1

It had been two weeks since it came out that Captain Malcolm Reynolds and River Tam were together. Zoe and Kaylee were happy for them, Jayne found it hysterically funny, and Simon and Inara _seemed _to tolerate it. The truth of the matter was that Simon and Inara were plotting against the new couple. Their mission was simple: break up Mal and River. This was kept a secret between the two of them. No one else could know, or they might try to stop them. They did a great job of keeping it quiet. They'd only meet when no one else was around. No one noticed. No one knew…well…not exactly…

****

"Mal," her voice was quiet as they lied together in the darkness of his bunk.

"Hm?" he asked, somewhat half asleep.

"I don't think that Simon and Inara are really as okay with us as they led us to believe."

"Why do you say that, little one?"

"They don't think as quietly as they think that they do. Shouts in my head. Echoing so loud…"

"What have you been hearing?" he asked as he traced her spine with his finger, sending chills down her body.

"They're going to try to break us up."

"Really?"

"They've been working together since they found out about us."

"They didn't consider the fact that you're a genius reader did they?"

"No."

"Well, we'll know it's comin' then."

"What if it works?"

"Darlin'…" he brought her closer to his chest. "I'm not about let that happen."

"They have a good plan!"

"But it's a _plan_! It's gonna take more than a gorram plan to make me even doubt what we got. Not even the best plan in all the 'verse could."

He kissed her reassuringly, but she felt like something would come between them. It was a gut feeling, the kind you try to ignore but it hangs in the air like a dense fog. He played with her hair a little bit while she moved closer to him. She wanted to feel his skin, his warmth, and she never wanted to be without him ever again. Eventually she fell asleep with her head tucked under his chin, her ear to his chest listening to his heartbeat.

The morning came quicker than she thought it would. She was awake before he was, like always. She kissed him on the cheek by the ear before whispering, "Time to get up."

"Five more minutes," he grumbled. She kissed him again on the cheek working her way to his lips and then down his neck. "I need more sleep…"

"Well I'm getting up and getting dressed…if I can find my clothes."

She tried to get up, but he held her tighter, bringing her even closer to his chest. "I don't want you to go yet."

"I'm just going to get dressed."

"I know! You know I don't much care for seein' your beautiful body bein' covered by clothes!"

"I can't walk this ship naked!"

"If it were up to me you would."

She laughed and then kissed him behind the ear. He loosened his grip slightly, since that was a ticklish spot. It was enough to where she could slip out of his grasp.

"Not fair!" he growled.

She laughed and then started getting dressed. He rolled out of bed muttering about how unfair it was that she knew his every weakness. She was amused by his barely audible ranting. They both got dressed and ready to start the day. She straightened his collar while he shaved and then fixed his uneven sleeves before wrapping her arms around his waist and pressing her cheek against his shoulder. He grinned and set his electric razor down, taking her hands in his. He pulled her around so she was standing in front of him.

"Ready to start the day?" he asked.

She pulled him down into a quick kiss and then breathed onto his lips, "I am now."

He smiled and kissed her once more before they both left his bunk. It was River's turn to make breakfast, so Mal decided to pitch in. He didn't know the first thing about cooking, unless you count the meal packets he got while in the army. She was making the protein pancakes and he was put in charge of the protein oatmeal. He added too much water and then burned it, so she took that over and had him just hand her the ingredients.

"I can fly ships, shoot guns, hell, I even beat a guy in a sword fight, but I can't cook!" he fumed.

"I can think of a few other things you can do too," she said with a suggestive tone in her voice. He laughed.

"Let's not go there 'til later darlin'."

"I was talking about closing business deals."

"_Surrreeee _you were."

"You sound skeptical."

"Do I?"

"You do."

"I am. You sure you was talkin' about 'business deals', albatross?"

"Maybe more like _meetings_."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around her midsection while she stirred the batter. He nuzzled her temple with his nose before kissing her cheek. He moved his lips across her jaw line, stopping to kiss her throat. She giggled and started squirming to get away from his torturous kisses.

"This got us in trouble last time!" she reminded him in between laughs.

"You know my weaknesses, and I know yours little one." He moved his mouth back to her ear and whispered playfully, "Payback."

She leaned against him and then turned so he could kiss her on the lips, which he did happily. They stopped their public displays of affection as the other crew members started flowing in. Zoe was up first, followed by Inara, then Simon and Kaylee, last being Jayne like it almost always was.

Breakfast was easy going for the most part. Mal got a death stare from Simon when he put his arm across the back of River's chair, even if it was only for a moment to reach across the table to give Jayne a high five for a joke he told. River got the same treatment from Inara when she playfully shoved Mal after a comment about her cooking. Mal and River were walking on thin ice around Simon and Inara. River could hear their thoughts. They were red hot, burning with anger and in Inara's case, jealousy. _They should not be together, and they won't be for long. He doesn't deserve my mei mei. _Simon thought. _**Look at them together. That should have been us. He won't be with her once I'm done with him**_**. **Inara thought angrily. This disturbed River more than she could put into words. She didn't know what they were planning, but she hoped that it wouldn't work.


	2. Chapter 2

"This is Captain Malcolm Reynolds requesting permission to dock."

After a gargled reply that obviously stated "Yes", they docked on the quaint little border planet called Daltin. It was a lovely place with plenty of busy towns. Sure it wasn't like Osiris with the big cities and fancy technologies, but it was still breathtaking and worth stopping to enjoy even if they were there on business.

"Ready to be back on solid ground?" Mal asked.

"Ready to see the sky, feel the wind…" River sighed, shutting her eyes to imagine the feel of the wind catching her hair once again. He watched her go on one of her "trips" as he called them. She'd go off in her head seeing, picturing, who knows what.

They met Zoe and Jayne in the galley to discuss the plan. Jayne, already convinced there would be a shootout of epic proportions, had two guns at his side, one in his holster, Vera in his hands, and enough ammo to supply three battalions.

"Jayne, we ain't fighting a war."

"I remember a time when we was on the mule bein' chased by Reavers and I didn't have no grenades…"

"Lighten the load a little bit. Okay?"

Jayne growled and then set one clip of ammo on the table. Mal rolled his eyes, but didn't make his mercenary leave anything else.

"Zoe, you and River will wait outside while Jayne and I make the deal. Shouldn't be bloody unless they don't wanna play nice."

They piled onto the mule and set out for the next job. For some reason, Mal was feeling a mite protective of his little albatross as they navigated the cobblestone streets. She had been on so many jobs since Miranda, and she always did a great job. Her gift actually helped them get away with only a few scrapes in the past. He knew what she was capable of. Sometimes at night he would remember seeing her helpless on the floor at the Maidenhead, surrounded by all of the men she almost killed…or did. He wondered if even then he knew that he loved her. He wasn't sure why he scooped her up and brought her home, but he was glad that he did. He knew his fears for her safety were irrational. She was strong, agile, intuitive. Yet he was still terrified that something would happen, like a stray bullet finding its way into her flesh. Even if she got as much as a paper cut, he'd feel terrible. He held her hand tightly, like if he let go she'd fly away with the breeze.

The mule came to a halt outside of a shabby cottage. The shutters were hanging by a thread, the windows had been boarded up, and some type of ivy snaked its way up the peeling exterior. Mal and Jayne hopped out while the ladies stayed in the mule. Mal flashed a smile at River before walking up to the front door. Jayne knocked twice heavily with his fist. The door cracked open with a loud cry from the rusted hinges. An odd little man with large green eyes peered out at them. He went by the name of Emerald.

"Reynolds?" he hissed.

"That's me. This is Jayne. We're here to deal."

The door opened further and the man invited them in. They entered the poorly lit dwelling with a tiny bit of apprehension. A few other men sat around the room smoking cigars, drinking, and playing cards. They all stopped what they were doing and looked at Mal and Jayne with piercing gazes.

"So ya want to deal?" Emerald asked. His voice reminded Mal of nails down a bulkhead.

"That's right," Mal nodded.

"We'll give ya a third, right now all pretty 'n shiny. The rest comes with delivery. Dong ma?"

"Wait now. We agreed to half now, half later."

"Things 'ave changed. It's a third now, the rest later. Or ya can take ya business elsewhere 'n be on ya merry."

"We'll be on our merry to the authorities. They'd love to hear 'bout what you're askin' for."

Every man in the room drew a gun from their holsters.

"We didn't want no trouble, Reynolds. One third. Take it or leave it. Or would ya rather 'ave a bullet in b'tween ya eyes?"

"One third it is. We'll be back with your goods. I'd like to be seein' that third right about now."

Emerald motioned to one of the seated men. He handed Mal a briefcase. He quickly checked to make sure it was all there.

"See ya then, Reynolds."

"Let's go Jayne."

They left as quickly as they could. That was tense. If they hadn't have agreed, there probably would have been a shootout like Jayne thought there would be. Mal instantly relaxed when he saw River sitting in the back of the mule, staring at the sky mystically. They climbed back into the mule.

"How'd it go sir?" Zoe asked.

"Not good. They only gave us one third."

"I thought it was supposed to be half!"

"The gorram room was filled with guys with guns! If we hadn't taken that deal when we done, they woulda filled us with bullet holes!" Jayne cried.

"Well, it's better than none I guess…" Zoe sighed.

Mal smiled at River and quickly threaded her fingers with his own. They returned to Serenity after a short ride. They planned to leave after some down time on the planet. Even birds needed time to stand on solid ground. Great, now he was even thinking like River. Well…he kind of liked it, truth be told.

"Would you like to come into town with me, darlin'?" Mal asked with a faint smile.

"Of course."

He put his arm around her shoulders and they started walking down the ramp out into the town. Simon and Kaylee were behind them. Simon burned with rage and frustration at seeing the happy couple ahead of him.

"I think it's great you acceptin' River 'n Mal. They're just so shiny together! River's been a mite better since. So has the cap'in, all smiles and stuff!" Kaylee said happily.

"Yes well…" he paused, watching River and Mal walk away. "They're…something." The last part was more of a growl than anything else. Kaylee didn't know that "something" was not being used as a kind term in this case.

"That they are. And you're taking it so well!"

He forced a smile before taking her hand and walking into the town.


	3. Chapter 3

For a small town, the place was hopping. People were walking about, street vendors were everywhere, all kinds of vehicles flew down the street, everything was loud and busy, and all of it fascinated River. She watched everyone go by, sometimes hearing their thoughts. It was cold out since it was nearing winter there. River was in one of her shorter dresses with thinner material. She was starting to shiver, but she ignored it pulling Mal by the hand down the street to go look at one of the more interesting vendors. He was selling wooden flowers. She couldn't help picking one up and putting it behind her ear.

"Do you like it?" she asked.

"Sure do," he said with a smile. He paid the vendor and they continued on their way. He could tell that she was getting cold, so they stopped. "You look a mite chilly…"

"Just a bit."

He took his coat off and gave it to her. It was too long and way too big, but she pulled it tightly around her. She loved how it smelled like Mal. He looked down at her and his smile widened. She took the flower out from behind her ear and put it behind his instead. He laughed, but didn't take it off.

"You look better in my coat than I ever could."

"I have to say the same about the flower."

They laughed together for a moment or so. She kissed him on the cheek and then he wrapped his arm around her, tucking her securely against his side. He kissed her on the top of the head and then asked, "You feelin' warmer, little one?"

"Much."

The entire time, two of Emerald's men had been tailing Mal. They watched him walk away with River at his side.

"Looks like we 'ave found 'is weakness, we 'ave!"

"The boss 'ill be 'appy."

"That he will."

River stopped suddenly, causing Mal to almost make her fall forward. She had that look in her eye that said something was wrong.

"What's wrong?" Mal asked nervously.

"Someone's watching us. Snakes in the grass. Don't take the fruit."

Mal gently rubbed her arms trying to calm her down. She seemed agitated. She looked up at him and then shut her eyes. After a deep breath she said, "I'm okay now. They went away."

"Who was watching us?"

"Don't know. Two slimy green snakes in the grass. That's all I know."

"Well don't worry about it right now darlin'. Let's go get something to eat."

They got some lunch and browsed a few of the shops and vendors in the area. After that they went back to Serenity. Kaylee and Simon were out on the town, Inara had a client, and Zoe challenged Jayne to a shooting contest somewhere in the nearby woods. They had the ship to themselves for the afternoon. They decided to spend their time in the cargo bay so they could look out at the sky. They had a blanket spread out on the hard metallic floor, so it was at least somewhat comfortable. She was sitting up looking out at the slow moving clouds and he was lying across her lap with the wooden flower still behind his ear.

He looked up at her, watching her intently. Her eyes were bright and pensive. He wondered what she was thinking about.

"I'm identifying the different types of clouds," she explained with a mischievous grin. He didn't mind about being read anymore. She looked down at him and smiled, gently stroking his hair. "You still have the wooden flower behind your ear."

"I know. I think it goes with my suspenders."

She laughed and quickly took the flower, putting it behind her ear.

"Hey!" he cried as he sat up. He tried to get it back, but she kept moving out of his grasps. Well, he could have gotten it if he wanted to but he didn't. Instead he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her ever so gently. "So what kinds of clouds are there?"

"There're nimbus, cumulus, stratus, and cirrus clouds just to name a few."

"That's an awful lot. What you seein' right now?"

"Cumulus clouds."

"What do they look like?"

"Well, cumulus clouds are the puffy ones. They're below six thousand five hundred feet and are called Vertical clouds. They typically form when warm air rises and reaches a level of comparatively cool air, where the moisture in the air condenses. This usually happens through convection where a parcel of air is warmer than the surrounding air…sorry, I'll stop talking."

"No, I like hearin' you talk. How'd you get so smart anyhow?"

She blushed. She had been called smart before, but coming from him it made her feel really special. He held her a bit tighter, whispering in her ear, "You're my little genius."

She smiled and quickly turned to kiss him. They kissed pretty hard and while they were doing so, he snuck the flower out of her hair. When they broke apart he held up the flower triumphantly. She reached for it, but he put it behind his ear.

"You really like that flower, don't you?" she asked with folded arms.

"It makes me feel pretty." She laughed. "What? It does!"

"You don't require that flower to make you pretty. Dong ma?"

"You sure?"

"Positive."

He smiled and then kissed her again. He looked adorable with that little wooden flower sticking out of his perfect hair. She couldn't resist running her hands lightly through it. They broke apart abruptly.

"Zoe and Jayne are almost here," River announced.

"Let 'em see. I don't care."

He put his arms around her midsection and lifted her into his lab. She was giggling the entire time. She leaned back against him, setting her head on his shoulder. Sure enough, Jayne and Zoe came walking up to the ship.

"I can't believe it was a gorram tie! I almost had ya!" Jayne grumbled.

"Maybe next time."

They hesitated when they saw Mal and River looking so intimate. Zoe pulled Jayne by the shirt after a nod in their direction. They heard Jayne's voice fading as he walked away. "Did you see the flower in Mal's hair? Ha-ha!"

"It still makes me feel pretty. I don't care 'bout what he thinks. He's just don't have a _softer _side."

River laughed, lightly nibbling on his neck before looking up at him. "That's why I love you."

"Because I look great with a flower in my hair?"

"Not quite, even if it is true."

"Why thank you darlin'. I like the new look myself. I think I'll always put a flower in my hair. It'll confuse my enemies."

"Will it now?"

"Sure will."

She nuzzled her face into his neck, breathing in his intoxicating sent. She gripped his shirt, afraid that if she let go he'd be carried away. He gently stroked her silky hair with one hand while the other gently rubbing her back.

"Why you hangin' on so tight, little one?"

"Don't want you to go away."

"I ain't going anywhere…"

"I'm going to hold you to that."

"See that you do lil' albatross…see that you do…"


	4. Chapter 4

When Simon and Kaylee returned to the ship, Mal and River were still in the cargo bay holding each other. They were talking about how a storm cloud was made and Mal had a wooden flower in his hair. The sight obviously made Simon see red. River looked at him oddly as he walked by before explaining to Mal what a "tropopause" was.

Inara came back later that day, right before dinner. She didn't see Mal and River, since she borrowed her old shuttle to meet up with the rich guy that lived a few towns over. Simon pulled her aside while Kaylee was distracted by an engine problem.

"Our plan has to be put into effect tonight," he whispered.

"Why so soon?"

"It looks like they're getting closer and falling more in love everyday. He had a wooden flower in his hair when we walked in and he was listening to River talk about storm clouds."

"He has it bad."

"He has it bad."

"This might be harder than we thought."

"We still have to try. This is my mei mei!"

"Alright. Wait for my signal."

He nodded and they quickly separated before arousing any suspicion. Their plan was somewhat simple, and yet intricate at the same time…not to mention devastatingly devious. Inara would get Mal alone, using her seductive charm to get him into a compromising position. Meanwhile, Simon would get River to go to the room they were in at that exact time. She'd catch him with her. She'd tell River all about how he asked her to stay causing her to obvious run away hurt and in tears. Then Simon would be there to pick up the pieces of his mei mei and Inara would be there for Mal. A perfect plan.

They had left the cargo bay and split up for a short amount of time. He found himself missing her already and it had only been an hour. He went to see her. _I'll just pop in and say hello real quick. Just a minute or two. _He thought quietly. He dropped in on her while she was in her room drawing. Any busy tasks throughout the ship Zoe had under control and they didn't have to take off until after dinner, so she had a few minutes of down time. She heard him coming long before he arrived. Smiling, she set her sketch pad and pencil on the floor. Like clockwork, he knocked on the door just when she knew he would. He slid it open, sticking just his head in with a silly grin on his face.

"Can I come in?"

"Of course."

He quickly went over to her. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he picked her up around the waist. They kissed happily. They pulled apart, looking into one another's eyes.

"You can put me down now," she reminded him.

"But I like looking up at you."

"There's more than one way you can look up at me you know…"

He set her down on the bed gently and then sat next to her.

"So why are you paying me a visit?"

"I can't just drop in on my little albatross?"

"Sure you can. But I saw you an hour ago."

"An hour is too long, darlin'."

She smiled and wrapped her arms around him, pulling him into a hug. He put his arms around her too. They just _belonged _there. He knew that they did. She felt the same way and was glad to hear that he felt the same. Yes, she was reading his thoughts again. He wasn't the only voice in her head. Simon's voice came thundering in filled with all kinds of unpleasant emotions. She drew in a sharp breath. Mal instantly felt her tense up.

"What's wrong?"

"Simon…he's not happy…" she muttered as she tried to sort through the shouting to find actual words. She put her face into Mal's shirt. Her head felt like it was splitting into two as she searched, sifted, through the screams. He knew that at times like these it was just better to be there without thinking or saying much of anything. Then she heard it and fear crept into her heart.

"Their plan…it's going to happen tonight…" she whispered.

"Simon and Inara's?"

"Yes."

"Well don't worry yourself little one. I'll know it's comin' and so will you. Remember I ain't going anywhere."

He was so sure. That made her feel better. If he could be so certain, so could she. He was her strength, her guiding light. She'd feel better if she knew what the plan was, but she couldn't always make out what was being thought and even then, some thoughts drowned out the others. They went their separate ways, busying themselves with chores and other things until everyone got together for dinner. Dinner went surprisingly smooth. River was expecting from Simon and Inara, but nothing happened.

River was pretty much the full time pilot now, so she was in the cockpit getting ready for take off. It was bumpy at first, but once they got through the atmosphere things went a little smoother. Mal entered the cockpit and quickly wrapped his arms around his favorite little albatross. He kissed her temple lightly.

"How am I supposed to navigate the black with you distracting me like you are?" she asked.

"There's this great thing called 'autopilot' darlin'."

He kissed her again only with more force on the neck and then on the corner of her mouth.

"I'm trying to fly the ship."

"And I'm tryin' to get you to come with me."

"I've spent almost the whole day with you!"

"I know and I wanna make it all day!"

He reached across her and switched it over to autopilot. He took her hand and helped her out of the chair even though she didn't need any help. They started kissing pretty passionately. Her hands were entangled in his hair and his were resting on her hips. Kaylee's thoughts suddenly appeared in River's head with force. She stopped kissing him, but left her lips against his.

"Kaylee needs some help."

"No…" Mal groaned.

"She dropped something under the engine and she can't reach it. I'm smaller than her. I think I can help."

"You're _flexible _enough."

She smiled and pulled him into one last kiss.

"I'll be in the common area in a few minutes."

"Then so will I."

She left to go help Kaylee. Mal went to the common area ranting about how the girl had to help everyone all the time. Inara came out of her room just as Mal walked down the steps. Simon was in his lab. Inara nodded her head towards Simon. That was the signal. It was time for their plan to be put into action. 


	5. Chapter 5

Simon quickly went up the stairs to find River while Inara started to work her magic.

"Mal can you please help me with something?"

"What do you need helpin' with?"

"I need to get something out of one of the cabinets in the lab and I can't reach."

"That's what you need helpin' with?"

"Yes."

He sighed and then followed her into the doc's lab. He had rushed away in a hurry. Mal wasn't sure what was going on at first, but he caught on eventually.

"It's in there," she said pointing to one of the cabinets. Mal opened the doors and looked at the various shelves.

"What is it you need?"

"That icepack up there."

Mal reached up and grabbed the icepack with ease and then handed it to her.

"Why you do you need this?" he asked.

"My ankle's been giving me grief." She took it from him, leaning into his personal space before seductively saying, "I owe you." She was getting ready for the finale. She would fake pain in her ankle and Mal being Mal, would rush to help her walk. Then, Simon and River would walk in! Perfect.

However, Simon couldn't find River anywhere. He was looking all over the place desperately trying to find her. She was a bit preoccupied under the large turning engine.

"Thanks for helpin' me get that back River! You always know jus' when I need ya!" Kaylee beamed.

"No problem. Am I getting closer to it?"

River couldn't see the tiny engine part that fell from her angle, so Kaylee was directing her. Simon's urgent thoughts rushed into her own. He needed to find her. She was busy, so she ignored him and continued her mission to retrieve the part.

Back with Mal and Inara, Mal was starting to catch onto what was going on. Simon had rushed away, Inara was there and acting rather strange for Inara. She wasn't being herself. Could this somehow be the plan River was worried about?

"Inara, what in the hell are you playin' at?" he asked roughly.

"I have a sore ankle and I needed some help…"

"Cut the act. You and Simon are working together, aren't you?"

_**How does he know?**_ She thought breathlessly. He could tell by the look on her face that it was true.

"Answer me!"

"I…we…no."

"Gorram Inara! I thought you were graceful and dignified! I never thought you to be the schemin' type!"

"I am graceful and dignified! You never seemed to notice or care!"

"I did! You left, remember?"

"You didn't stop me!"

"I thought that you wanted to go! I wasn't about to stand in your way!"

"I didn't want to go! I wanted you to stop me! I wanted you!"

"What's done is done, Inara! We can't go back. I've moved on. It's not like I'm askin' you to be in our weddin' or anything! I'm just askin' that you accept what is and move on!"  
Simon heard the shouting and returned to the lab, although he hadn't found River.

"Wedding?" Inara asked.

"What wedding?" Simon asked as he entered his lab.

"I didn't mean literal! It was to show my point!"

"What's going on in here?" Simon asked pointedly.

"He knows about our plan."

"How?" Simon gaped.

"River's a reader. She hears things. Your little plan was one of 'em. I'm gonna say the same to you that I said to her. I'm not askin' for you to be shiny about me and River. I just want both of you to accept what it is."

"I'm sorry _Captain _but I can't do that."

"I know that I'm not the shiniest guy in the 'verse, but I love your sister. I'm gonna do right by her no matter what."

"She's a fragile teenage girl and you're a criminal that's twice her age!"

"I know it ain't the typical romance, but as I said _I love her_. What part of don't you get?"

"She doesn't need this right now! She's still mentally unstable and traumatized!"

"She's on the mend! She has been! And I know that she has problems. We all do, doc and I plan on helpin' her through 'em all."

"You? You're going to help her?" Simon snorted.

"I have been there for her when you weren't."

"Are you implying that I'm not there for my sister?"

"Not lately. You got your own life now, which rightly you should."

"When I have I not been there?"

"She can't sleep. Has been for awhile now, but before she couldn't 'til early mornin'. One night I found her in bad shape. I've been with her every night since."

"So that's you've been there for her by screwing her when she's vulnerable?"

"Simon, you're getting a little overheated…" Inara said calmly.

"Answer me, _Captain_."

"No. I've been there by wrappin' my arms around her and holdin' her close when she's afraid and hurtin'."

"But you have had sex with her haven't you?"

"Stay out of my sex life and I'll stay out of yours."

"Son of a bitch!"

Simon threw the first punch. Mal barely moved from his position. He punched Simon back, caught up in the heat of the moment. Inara tried to calm them down, but Simon threw another punch. He hit Mal in the gut, but he's the one that ended up getting hurt since he punched Mal's rock hard abs. Mal threw another punch.

River emerged from under the engine with the tiny engine part with a smile on her face. Kaylee took it happily and then gave River a quick hug. In a rush, first Mal's then Inara's and then Simon's thoughts poured into River's head. They were angry…very angry.

"Kaylee, I think something's wrong with Mal and Simon."

She didn't have to repeat herself. They ran out into the ship and didn't have to second guess where they were. They just followed the shouting to the lab. They fight had moved into the common area. Inara was still pleading with the two men to stop fighting. Kaylee tried to get them to stop, but it was in vain. River said something, but that didn't work either. River grabbed Mal by the shirt and then kissed him behind the ear. He backed away from Simon, who was on the floor with a pretty bad nose bleed. River pushed Mal into the wall and whispered against the same spot she kissed, "Please stop."

He nodded with a deep breath. Kaylee helped Simon up and walked him into the lab to get him fixed up. River saw to Mal. She sat him down on the couch after the lab doors shut.

"What was that about?" she snapped as she wiped some blood off of his lip with her sleeve.

"He started it. Right Inara?"

"He did," Inara confirmed before leaving them alone.

"I don't care who started it! Luckily I finished it before you did!"

"I'm sorry, darlin'. They were goin' ahead with their plan and I was fighting with Inara when Simon showed up. It just kept goin' and goin'…"

"Tell me what happened."

He went through the story while she carefully looked over every inch of his face and then his hands. His knuckles were red and inflamed, he had a swollen cheek, a fat lip, and his abs were slightly sore.

"That's what happened, little one. I'm sorry about your brother, but when I get hit I hit back. That's just the way I am."

"It's okay. I'm just glad their plan didn't work."

He nodded and kissed her on the forehead. Sometimes his temper scared her. His thoughts were the loudest during the fight, not to mention the darkest. It shook her up a little bit, especially since her brother was on the receiving end of all that fury. That didn't change the fact that she was madly in love with him and he felt the same way about her. Still, something inside her said that even though Simon and Inara's plan was foiled, something else would try to come between them…


	6. Chapter 6

Later that night, they descended into his bunk. He took off his suspenders and then his shirt. A good sized bruise was on his stomach. It hurt him to move around. It didn't hurt at first, but the doc had good power behind his punches. It hurt her just to look at it.

"I'm so sorry he did that to you."

"Na, it's fine. I'm the one that's sorry. I didn't mean to punch him back as hard as I did."

She took his hands in hers and gently kissed his throbbing knuckles. She ghosted a kiss over his swollen cheek and then kissed his bottom lip tenderly. She cupped his chin and then hand her hand half way down his chest. He kicked off his boots and then climbed into bed. She joined him after slipping into a nightgown.

She barely ran her fingers over his bruised abs before planting a light kiss on the bruise. It stung a bit, but he loved her soft lips on his skin. She comfortably tucked herself against his arm. She held onto it tightly. He traced her profile softly. She laughed when she felt his finger glide down her throat. He leaned over and kissed her long and caringly.

"Goodnight, little one."

"Goodnight."

She kissed his shoulder and then they both shut their eyes. She had a nightmare that night. She hadn't had any nightmares or breakdowns in awhile. It was a very blurry dream. She wasn't sure what was going on. She was chasing what looked like two green snakes. She followed them through a pool of blood. The source of that blood was Mal. He was lying on the ground bleeding and unmoving. She fell to his side and tried to wake him up, but he was dead. She sat up with a panicked cry. Mal woke right up since he had been holding her when she sat up. He set his hand on her shoulder.

"Darlin'?"

She relaxed the second she heard his voice. She wrapped her arms around him as tightly as she possibly could.

"Hey, I'm right here. And…little one…I could use…some air…"

She pulled away and looked at him. Other than the things that Simon did to him, he was fine. She put her arms around him again, this time grasping his hair and burying her face in the nape of his neck. _Whatever she had dreamed it must have been pretty bad_, he thought.

"Green snakes in the grass…so much blood…wouldn't wake…" she said on the brink of tears.

"Shh, I got you."

She looked at his face carefully with tears in her eyes. The image of him lying on the ground, dead and in a pool of blood flashed into her head. She pulled him into a hard kiss on the mouth before kissing him pretty much all over. He put his hands on her face and met her lips with his own before gazing into her troubled eyes.

"That must have been one bad nightmare," he said softly. She nodded with a look that just cried out, "Hold me" so he did.

"So much blood…" she whispered as she clung to him tighter.

"It's over now darlin'. It was just a dream."

She nodded against his shoulder. She was afraid to go back to sleep, but she wanted Mal to so she pretended to be asleep. He lay back down with her still pressed firmly against his chest. He fell asleep pretty quickly. She could feel his chest rise and fall with each heavy breath he drew in. She watched him sleep until the morning.

They landed on the nearby moon called Chattinooga. Their task was simple. Steal the seven crates of illegal minerals and return them to Emerald. They clean up to be very pricey jewels that make a fortune through illegal circuits. There would be a warehouse full of the crates. There would be at least one hundred crates. They wouldn't miss seven. The entire moon was for mining. That was pretty much the only profession available. If they did it right, they could sneak in and out with the crates without being caught. It would take precision, stealth, skill, and the mule.

River went with them, although Mal wasn't exactly happy about it. This job could go south very quickly and he didn't want to put her in the line of fire. They stopped the mule around the back of the warehouse.

"Zoe, Jayne, with me. River, watch the mule."

"You said yourself that this job needed stealth. I have that. Why can't I go inside?"

"We need someone on the mule and the crates are probably heavy."

"Goupi!"

"We don't have time to argue about this! I'm ordering you to stay here!"

River rolled her eyes and then stood by the mule in an angry silence. Mal ignored her and then followed Jayne and Zoe inside.

The place had wall to wall crates. The crates were good sized. _This might be a mite trickier than we thought_, Mal thought. The security was wandering the rows of crates with a gun at the ready. Luckily they hadn't been detected. Jayne and Mal got the first one down. It was extremely heavy. They started lugging it out to the mule. They loaded the first one on. Zoe came out with one of the crates hovering beside her. She was just guiding it with two black lines.

"Haven't you ever seen these hover crates before?" she asked. Jayne grunted and started mumbling about how she could have told them that _before_ they carried it outside.

They got three more out before going back in for the other ones.

"Stop right there! You best be puttin' them hands up all nice 'n shiny right now 'fore my bullets start goin' through ya!" one of the men with guns shouted. Jayne laughed at his small handgun, quickly holding one of his larger guns pointed at him. Mal and Zoe also had their guns aimed at the man. He laughed and whistled. Soon they were surrounded by quite a few guys with guns. More than they could handle.

River was waiting by the mule impatiently. She got a bad feeling. Shortly after that, Jayne, Zoe, and Mal's thoughts poured into her head. There was trouble. From the sound of their thoughts, there was a lot of it. She reached into the back of the mule and got a few guns. The good thing about Jayne was that he was always prepared for any type of gunfight.

She slipped in through a window nearby. One of the men thought they saw a flash of something, but he ignored it and returned his attention to the three thieves.

"We don't want any trouble now," Mal began.

"It's only trouble fer ya thievin' vermin!"

River peeked out from a crate to take in all of the positions for the enemies. She didn't want to kill them, just to cause a distraction long enough for the remaining two crates to get out to the mule. She'd only aim for shoulders, arms, and maybe kneecaps. There was a break in the conversation. She knew that the one doing all of the talking was about to order the kill. She leapt up onto the row of the crates and started shooting. One…two…three…four guys down. It took a moment for Mal, Zoe, and Jayne to catch onto the fact that it was River. Then Jayne opened fire giving Zoe enough time to get the other two crates. Mal was freaking out.

There River was, leaping across the top of the crates shooting at all of the bad guys. There was a shouted order, "Aim for the girl!" All of the bullets were hurtling towards her. Mal's heart was pounding out of his chest. She was running, shooting, in danger. This wasn't a part of the plan. She jumped through the air, shooting all the while and taking down a few guys. She landed on the ground gracefully beside the guy that was talking. She kicked him in the back of the head, took his gun, used it to shoot one of the other guys in the shoulder, and then hit him in the face with it.

"SIR, TIME TO GO!" Zoe cried. River heard her and went running down the nearest isle of crates. She grabbed Mal's hand and they quickly escaped.

"What were you thinking?" Mal roared at River.

"Not now sir. We have to go. The mule will only run with one with the extra weight. The rest of us will have to follow on foot. I vote River should be the one to drive. She's the lightest."

He nodded and then turned towards her. "This conversation ain't over."

She ignored him and got onto the mule. She drove off quickly. She was sure that what she did was the right thing to do. Otherwise, they'd be dead.

Mal, Zoe, and Jayne make the long journey back to Serenity. Mal was fuming. She went against the plan, ignored his order, put herself in danger, and then blew him off.

"She saved our lives our job sir. She did a great job today."

"She disobeyed my order Zoe!"

"You know I ain't her number one fan, but the girl done great. So what if she disobeyed ya? Would you rather have us in there dead, dyin', or caught?" Jayne asked.

"No, but still-"

"Face it Mal. You're only upset 'cause she coulda gotten hurt. You gotta let go when we's on a job. It'll get us in trouble."

"I'm actually agreeing with Jayne on this one, sir."

Mal walked ahead of them after growling, "Zhukou" meaning "Shut up." He had to face it. They were right. He was even angrier by the time he got back to Serenity. This wouldn't be good…


	7. Chapter 7

River was in the galley cleaning up a tiny cut she got during one of her many acrobatic moves. Mal came thundering in. She could tell that he was angry. He was practically screaming in her head. He saw that she was hurt. It just made him angrier that she _did _get hurt because she disobeyed his order.

"Are you okay?" he asked. She nodded silently. They stayed in silence for a few minutes before the fight began. He was the first to speak.

"What was that back there?"

"That was me saving your life."

"You disobeyed me and put yourself in danger!"

"And I saved you, Zoe, Jayne and the job."

Her levelheadedness was annoying him.

"Next time you go all heroic on us things might not work out all shiny!"

"But they did!"

"But next time might be different! If you disobey me again and try to do somethin' crazy things might go the other way! They might get worse. You might get killed. We might get killed. Or arrested…"

"This time everything worked out! You'd rather me have stayed outside, ignored everyone's thoughts, my bad feeling, and just let things go south? You'd rather be back in that warehouse dead right now?"

"What you don't get is that this time it worked, next time it might not!"

"I don't see why you're making a big deal out of this!"

"Think of the bigger picture! If I tell you to do something, you do it! What if you had come in there and they saw you and you were shot dead? Or what if you had blown our cover?"

"I knew that you were in trouble for sure!"

"Next time! _NEXT TIME _that might happen!"

"Maybe next time you'll actually let me help on a job!"

"You do help!"

"Not like I did before! It's always 'wait outside', 'watch the mule', 'stay put'. I can never be in the thick of things anymore!"

"I don't want to put you in the middle of the fight! I don't want you in danger 'less you have to be!"

"Danger is everywhere! Ai ya, you can't stop protecting me! You never did before! If I do help, you yell at me for it!"

"I don't want to lose you!"

"I don't want to lose you either, and yet you still keep doing your job!"

"But if you die out there it's my fault!"

"Everything is dangerous! If I hadn't come in when I did-"

"Gorramit River! You could have been killed!"  
"But I wasn't!"

"Youzhi jian! You aren't gettin' what I'm saying!"

"Naïve child? You just called me a naïve child?"

"I didn't-"

"Youzhi jian means naïve child, you can't argue that."

"But I didn't mean-"

"Are you saying that I'm a child?"

"River-"

"Answer me!"

"I didn't mean it the way it came out."

"You did. Meng yuben zhi ren!"

"I am not a stupid jerk!"

"You're the one acting like a youzhi jian, a meng youzhi jian at that!"

"Now wait a gorram minute! I'm not the one actin' like a child!"

"Oh so you _did _mean it?"

"Maybe I did!"

"Cao ni Mal! CAO NI!"

"You did not just say fuck you to me! YOU DID NOT!"

"I did!"

"Grow up!"  
"You're the one that needs to grow up!"

"I'm not the teenager here!"

"Oh so _now _you care about the age difference! That didn't stop you from having sex with me, now did it?"

They took a moment to take a breath. Kaylee and Simon were watching from one entrance while Jayne and Zoe were watching from the other and they had been since pretty much the beginning. Mal and River didn't notice. They had even forgotten why they started fighting.

"You're still a meng youzhi jian. Stay away from me, dong ma?" she spat.

"River, I-"

"Dong ma?" she shouted. He opened his mouth to reply, but she stormed out. He sadly sunk into a chair. Simon went after River with Kaylee hot on his heels to make sure he didn't make things worse. Jayne and Zoe entered the galley.

"Wow Mal…" Jayne said with a low whistle. "That was somethin' else. Nice work there." He let out a soft chuckle.

"Jayne, I can so hurt you right now. Get the whiskey, now." Zoe snapped.

"We're outta whiskey."

"You ain't outta your secret stash of whiskey you keep under the sink."

Jayne growled something more than unpleasant in Chinese before returning to the table with his bottle of whiskey and three mugs. He poured the whiskey quickly and already had his down before Zoe and Mal could even reach for theirs.

"That was bad, wasn't it?" Mal asked quietly.

"I'm afraid so sir. But it's just a fight. I can't tell you how many Wash and I had…"

"Was I wrong?" Mal asked after downing the contents of his mug. He took Zoe's silence as a yes. "I was just worried."

"I know sir. Still, River's right. You haven't let her in on the action since you two-"

"Since you been bangin' her."

"You have no tact Jayne. Were you raised by wolves?" Jayne grunted in response. Zoe turned her attention back to her captain. "Give her some time to cool down. Everything will be okay."

"Thanks Zoe." He smiled and patted his war buddy on the back.

"She really got ya with that comment 'bout yer sexin' and all," Jayne laughed.

"Remember how I could hurt you?" Zoe asked as she slowly pulled her gun out. She started to load it. Jayne took that as his cue, so he grabbed his whiskey and retreated to the safety of his bunk.

"Thanks a-"

"Don't thank me sir. I _enjoyed _that."

He smiled again. He felt terrible, needless to say. He wanted to march up to her and apologize for everything he said. He didn't mean half of it. He couldn't help thinking that River meant every word.

River was in her room crying and pacing. Simon came in followed almost instantaneously by Kaylee. Simon tried to pull her into a hug, but she pushed him away. Being in any man's arms other than Mal seemed wrong, unnatural even…even if she was angry at him. She let Kaylee hug her though.

"Meng yuben zhi ren!" River muttered.

"Aw honey he's just upset 'cause you coulda gotten hurt. It was comin' from a place o' love!"

"He thinks I'm a child."

Simon was watching silently. _Yes you are_. Simon thought angrily. River's eyes darted over to her brother. He could see it in her eyes. A storm was brewing.

"I am _not _a child. I grew up Simon! You just can't see past me being your mei mei! Don't even say anything. I'm still mad about what you did to Mal yesterday!"

"He hit me back!"

"He should have! I would have hit you too!"

Simon shook his head and stalked off. Kaylee was torn between going after him and staying with River. She turned to River and smiled.

"He'll get over it. Protectin' you is jus' the Cap'in's way of takin' care of you. He don't want you to get hurt 'cause he loves you. It's sweet in a…suffocatin' way. I'm sure Zoe is settin' him straight as we speak. He'll come 'round. Just give it time."

River nodded. Kaylee hugged her again and then she left to find Simon. She wanted to find Mal and say sorry for everything she said. She didn't mean half of it, but she couldn't help thinking that he meant every word…


	8. Chapter 8

The rest of the day, they avoided each other. Mal would see River and he'd almost go over to her, but she'd always walk away or someone would interrupt him with something that needed to be done. At dinner, River didn't show up at the table. Mal left mid meal to go to his bunk, and that's where he stayed. He felt dead without her. How had he gone on before her? He didn't know. It seemed impossible.

Everyone was talking about the fight. Inara caught wind of it from Simon via wave, since she was once again away in her shuttle on business. She tried to avoid getting her hopes up and so did Simon. Jayne was mostly talking about how feisty River was. He said that he should have known from the way she killed that she had spunk. Zoe and Kaylee were more concerned for Mal and River than anything else.

River would see Mal around or even try to come over, but she just needed time to cool off. She stayed in her room pretty much all night, until the nightmare.

She was walking down something. It was hard, like stone but bumpy like an old dirt path. She saw snakes, more than one, slithering ahead of her hissing on and on about something. She followed them to Mal. They linked together to form a silhouette of a man. The man said something, but his voice was inaudible. Mal nodded and agreed to whatever he said. Then something happened. It went too quickly for her to tell what happened exactly, but the silhouette was gone and Mal was on the ground in a pool of blood. She tried to wake him, but he wouldn't.

She sat up, panicked and confused by what she saw. Mal wasn't there. She was in her room for the first time since they got together. She would have given anything to feel him beside her at that moment, but he wasn't. She got out of bed and went to the cockpit. Before Mal, that was the thing that brought her comfort. It seemed so cold, lonely, now. The cold metallic floor of Serenity was nothing compared to being pressed against Mal's chest, flesh to flesh. She sat down on the floor by the control station. When the visions from the nightmare returned, only this time in more detail, she curled up into a ball and tried to block them out. However, the image of Mal's body in a pool of blood covered in snakes was too terrible to forget.

Mal couldn't sleep. The emptiness without feeling River's small body clinging to him was too much to bear. He got out of bed to walk around and gather his thoughts. When he climbed out of his bunk, he heard a familiar sound. It sounded like River crying. He turned towards the cockpit and started moving as quickly as he could without creating too much noise. Sure enough, there she was, curled up in a tiny ball just like that night. Just like that night, he went over to her and set his hand on her shoulder.

"What's wrong, little one?" he whispered.

"Everything."

One word, it broke him. He wanted to take it all away. He'd take the pain, the visions, the memories. She didn't deserve this. He put his arm around her and then his other one. Then he cautiously pulled her to his chest. She didn't pull away.

"Tell me," he whispered.

"Tell you what?"

"Everything. I want to know. I want to hear, listen." She had said that to him all those nights ago the very first time they met in the night, and now it was his turn.

"Snakes. Deceit. Don't take the apples. Not right. Not true. Lies. Blood. Death. Gone forever."

He brought her closer to him and gently leaned his forehead against hers. "Darlin' I got you."

The image of his body in blood popped into her head again. She wrapped her arms around him and clung as tightly as she could without hurting him. She started crying into his neck. He gently stroked her hair whispering over and over again, "I got you." She gripped his shirt and his hair. He was_ there_.

"Must have been a bad nightmare."

She nodded.

"It's over now. It was just a dream."

She nodded again.

After sometime, she loosened her grip on him. She looked up into his blue eyes.

"I'm sorry," she said softly.

"I'm sorry too. I didn't mean any of it."

"Me either…except the let me go inside on jobs part."

"I know. I…I'm afraid of losin' you."

"I'm afraid of losing you too."

"I love you, little one."

"I love you too."

They kissed. It felt so great to feel each other's lips again. They pulled apart. A hunger was awakened. They kissed again, this time harder. The kiss lasted until they needed air. She looked up into his eyes again. Her eyes had that look in them. She wanted him. Another kiss confirmed it. She breathed into his ear, "Bunk. Now."

He stood up with her wrapped firmly around him. Her arms were wrapped around his neck, running down his back, and her legs were wrapped around his waist. He carried her to his bunk, opening the hatch with his free hand. His other one couldn't help wandering down her back. His hands weren't the only thing wandering. His lips were moving down her neck and then back up her face again. He went down the ladder with her still wrapped around him. She kept kissing him the entire way down. He shut the hatch behind him. She pulled his suspenders down off of his shoulders. He quickly unbuttoned his shirt while simultaneously kicking his boots off. She undid his belt, tossing it aside so it landed in some weird location in his bunk. He ran his hands down her shoulders, slowly pushing the straps to her nightgown off. After a quick removal of undergarments that also went flying through the air, they tumbled onto his bed.

His lips couldn't help exploring her body at a slow and treacherous pace. She ran her small hands down his back, feeling his scars and taking in the sensation of his skin. After sometime, he lightly kissed her neck and then ran his tongue down her throat. She shivered under him. She kissed him on the mouth and then behind the ear followed by gently tugging on his earlobe. She felt him purr with contentment at her touch. Then he stopped for a moment just to look at her and truly admire her before progressing. After they shared their moment, she curled up across him and fell asleep. He slipped into a deep sleep himself after he felt her deep rhythmic breathing.

He looked at her as she slept quietly beside him. He couldn't stop smiling as he watched her back rise and fall with each sleepy breath. He wanted to reach out and touch her, kiss her, feel her, but he wanted her to keep sleeping. He wouldn't disturb what peaceful sleep she did get.

"I appreciate that, but I'm not asleep…" she yawned. He grinned and tucked a long strand of hair securely behind her ear so he could see her face. Her eyes were still closed, but she had a faint smile on her lips. He propped himself up on his arm so he could look at her more comfortably.

"I could look at you forever, darlin'."

"Looking is nice. Touching is better," she said with a devious smile as she flipped over onto her back. He ran his fingers down her face all the way down her bare chest to her belly button and then up again. She sighed happily under his gentle touch.

"Well little one, we got through our first fight."

"That we did," she said with another yawn.

"Now why would you be so tired, I wonder?" he asked playfully. She laughed as he sprawled out across the bed, putting his head on her stomach. She ran her hands through his hair and then caressed his face.

"Get those lips over here," she grinned. He smiled and then made his way up to her mouth, kissing her softly. She kissed him back pretty hard. Her hands started moving across his back, chest, arms, face. Her lips happily made their way down his chest. The alarm went off. He groaned. Usually they were up before it went off, but not that morning. He leaned his forehead against hers.

"I was right to call you albatross. You get me goin' just when we gotta get up! You're gonna kill me!" he growled. "But hell, that's the way I wanna go."

She smiled and kissed the nape of his neck before getting out of bed to start their day. She had forgotten the terrible nightmare. He wrapped his arms around her midsection and nuzzled his nose into her hair before she could get fully dressed. She had to fight her way out of his arms to be able to get to the drawer. She kept a few clothes in his room for these occasions. She had the dress in her hand, but Mal quickly took it from her. She chased him around the room, eventually having to tackle him to get it back.

Simon and Inara weren't pleased to see that they made up. It was obvious when they both showed up out of Mal's bunk fashionably late to breakfast. Neither one of them could stop smiling. After breakfast, it was time to go to work. They had to deliver the crates to Emerald. They loaded up the mule. River would drive it there and Mal, Zoe, and Jayne would walk. It wasn't too far on foot anyways. Mal looked up at River before she took off.

"We're old, so we might be a bit. Just stay safe. When we get there, you'll go inside with me while Jayne and Zoe deliver the crates."

"Thank you," she said it so only he could hear. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before taking off. She arrived at Emerald's shack long before Mal was even nearby. She tried to stay out of sight, but one of Emerald's men spotted her. She got the suddenly feeling something wasn't right. "Snakes in the grass," she muttered right before everything went black.


	9. Chapter 9

When they arrived, the mule was there but the crates and River were not. Mal instantly knew something was wrong. He drew his gun and stormed up to Emerald's cottage with Zoe and Jayne in tow.

"Sir?"

"Something is wrong here Zoe. I think they have River."

She didn't say another word. She and Jayne quickly got their guns ready. Mal kicked in the door. Once again, every man in the room had their guns pointed at them.

"Reynolds, I see yar back…" Emerald's voice floated in. It was like Mal's ear was being ripped off again. He entered with his arm around River's shoulders. A gun barrel was flush up against her temple. She looked surprisingly calm. "I 'ad me boys follow ya 'round last 'ime ya was here. Seems I found yar weakness."

"What happened to not wantin' trouble?" Mal asked, his gaze unwavering from River's.

"This is 'ow it is. I get me crates, 'n ya forget ya payment. In ex'ange, ya get the girl 'n she still be breathin'. Dong ma?"

"Snakes in the grass. Don't take the fruit," River said seriously.

"She been sayin' that since we took 'er. I think she's off 'er rocker she is!" Emerald laughed.

"We'll be on our merry, just let her go…" Mal was trying to stay calm, but it was more difficult then he thought it would be.

"I can't trust ya! 'ere's 'ow this goes. Ya be goin' now and then we'll drop 'er off at yar ship after we know yar a man of yar word."

"I can't trust you either. How do I know that you'll bring her back alive or at all?" Mal asked. His voice was so close to cracking with the latter of that statement.

"We've 'it an impasse."

River looked at Mal. He could have sworn that he heard her voice in his head say, "I've got him if you can give me cover." He looked at her to confirm what he heard. She nodded just enough to let him know he had heard her.

"Let me discuss this with my associates," Mal turned to Jayne and Zoe. "River has Emerald if we can provide cover." Zoe looked at Jayne. They nodded. He nodded back and turned towards them. "Well…" he began. He looked at River and nodded. She nodded back and then it began.

She bent her leg in a way that Mal thought to be impossible. She kicked Emerald in the head and caught his gun. Jayne and Zoe had already opened fire along with Mal. River joined in and then they ran to the mule with bullets flying in different directions. The men chased them outside. Emerald was closely behind them. "TAKE OUT THE GIRL! GET REYNOLDS WHERE IT 'URTS!"

Mal turned towards River. All of the men directed their aim at her. She was too busy running towards the mule to notice. Mal ran towards her and then jumped in front of her, taking three bullets, two in the chest and one in the leg. He fell to the cobblestone street. River stopped. Her heartbeat was drowning out any other sound. She sank beside him, tears burning in her eyes.

"This is why I want you to wait outside, little one…" he coughed.

"Stay with me," she muttered as she gripped his hand. Jayne and Zoe were running out of bullets.

"I love you darlin'."

"Don't act like this is goodbye. Don't."

He didn't answer. He shut his eyes and his grip loosened. River stood up and started walking towards the men. She easy dodged the bullets. It was like the Maidenhead and Mr. Universe's moon all over again. They didn't stand a chance. She took extra pleasure in snapping Emerald's neck. Once they were all dead, she returned to Mal's side. Zoe checked for a pulse. She nodded.

"He's still breathin'. Let's get him to Serenity. Jayne."

Jayne picked him up and put him into the mule. River sat beside him with his head in her lap. Zoe did the honors of piloting. River gently stroked Mal's hair whispering to him the entire way. "I got you."

"Kaylee, you there?" Zoe asked.

"Sure am Zoe. How'd the job go?"

"Tell Simon to be ready. We have an emergency. Several bullet wounds."

"Three…" River said softly.

"Three bullet wounds. We're just a few minutes out. Lower the ramp."

"Three?"

"Yes. Just move. We can't be wastin' time."

River tried to slow down the blood as best as she could. Simon taught her a few things about first aid, just in case. Zoe was also directing her since she had experience with this sort of thing.

They got to Serenity after a few minutes. Mal was still out when they got there.

"Jayne, help me get him to Simon. We're losin' time here," Zoe said calmly. On the inside, she was panicking. This was _Mal_. They'd known each other for so long. He had become such a huge part of her life, an anchor even. She wouldn't lose him.

Jayne lifted Mal out with help from River. He supported most of Mal's weight along with Zoe. Kaylee came rushing in and let out a little scream, tears instantly blurring her vision.

"Cap'in…" she croaked. Zoe and Jayne ignored her and rushed away. River followed quickly, also ignoring Kaylee.

"Who is it?" Inara asked nervously as she joined Kaylee. Kaylee wrapped her arms around Inara crying.

"It's the cap'in…" she sobbed. He came back from Niska's alive. He could fight this. He was tough. But three…three bullet wounds, that's something to worry about.

Jayne lifted Mal onto the table. Simon cut open Mal's shirt to assess the damage. River stood beside Mal's head, gently smoothing down his hair. Zoe stood at Simon's side, ready to assist the doctor in any way possible. Jayne just hovered in the doorway, trying to stay out of it.

"The first bullet went into his thorax. It might have hit his lungs or his heart, or maybe hit a rib. The second one went into his abdomen, again I don't know if it hit anything major. I have to open him up. His breathing his labored, he has a very weak pulse…how much blood did he lose?"

"River?" Zoe asked.

"A lot."

"I need my sugerical instruments and someone to help me w-"

"That's why I'm here doc," Zoe said, still the image of composure. Simon nodded and then looked at River. He didn't want more people than necessary in the room.

"I'm staying."

"But River-"

"Don't argue. We have work to do," Zoe snapped. He reluctantly agreed. Jayne left, shutting the door behind him. Inara and Kaylee were waiting on the couch.

"How bad?" Inara asked fearfully.

"They have to open him up. Might have hit somethin' important. River says he's lost a lot of blood…"

"Well he came back from a sword fight, Niska, more than a few bullet wounds before…this is nothing…" Inara choked.

"He ain't lookin' too hot right now…" Jayne trailed off.

Upon opening him up, they found out that the first bullet had missed the lungs and heart, but cracked one of the ribs. Simon cleaned up the bone fragments and removed the bullet. The other one, well that was another story. The bullet went through his spleen, which was far from good sense he had lost so much blood. Simon did the best he could with repairing it. He sewed him back up. Things looked grim. He needed blood. If he didn't get the blood he needed, he'd surely die. If the spleen got infected, started leaking, or didn't heal properly, he'd die. He let Zoe and River know all of this while he fixed up the other bullet hole in his leg. Luckily that bullet went straight through and missed anything vital.

"Do you know if anyone is his blood type?" Simon asked.

"Wash was…but…" Zoe stopped herself there.

"I'm O." River said quietly.

"Mal isn't. What does that have to do with anything?" Zoe asked.

"O is a universal blood type. Anyone can receive O. Since he has a positive blood type and so does River…"

"River can give him blood?" Zoe asked hopefully.

"Yes, but-"

"There is no but," River snapped.

"Mei mei, you are considerably smaller than he is and he needs a lot of blood."

"I don't care. I'll give him as much as I can."

"You two are siblings, so don't you have the same blood type?" Zoe asked.

"No, actually we aren't."

"Is anyone else on the crew O or Mal's blood type?" Zoe asked.

"I don't think so. Mal has an uncommon blood type. Maybe Inara. I haven't treated her."

Zoe was already out the door to ask. Sadly, no one else was O or Mal's type. It was up to River. Simon was worried about letting River do this. He had to. Besides, if he didn't Zoe would surely kill him. He set everything up and then put the needle into River's vein. She didn't even move. She looked rough. It was hard to tell if the blood all over her was hers or not. He also gave Mal a second IV full of antibiotics, just in case. He left River alone with him reluctantly after she asked. He didn't go far, just outside of the door with everyone else.

River looked down at Mal and tenderly caressed his face. "You always have me, so this time I got you. Just come back…please. I can't take the screams. I need you, Mal. Don't leave me."


	10. Chapter 10

After explaining everything he had to River and Zoe, the room became uncomfortably still. The man had been through hell. Not only had he survived the war, but he had survived Niska, bullet wounds, knife wounds, his ear was cut off and _reattached_, he beat a ship losing oxygen and heat, he survived the Operative on Mr. Universe's moon, he had walked away from a sword fight, one that he won, and yet three little bullet wounds might do him in for good.

"What happened exactly?" Simon asked. Somehow, that hadn't come up. He didn't really need to know. He knew it was bullet wounds, but other than that they had no idea what went down.

"We told River to go up ahead with the crates and wait for us. We got there and she was gone along with the crates. Mal knew instantly somethin' was wrong. We went into their cottage and were surrounded by gun hands. Emerald showed up with a gun to River's head, insistin' on us leavin' without pay or she'd die. Mal turned to us and said that River said she could take him if we gave her cover. How he knew this, I don't know. So we did and she kicked him in the head. We got out of there in a hurry. They started to aim for River, so Mal leapt in front of her. 'Fore I knew it he's down and she's beside him. We kept shootin' 'til River went and killed them all," Zoe explained.

"Why'd they take River?" Kaylee asked.

"They found out they was together 'n all. Said he found Mal's gorram weakness. I'm glad your lil' sis snapped his neck," Jayne growled.

"He took three bullets for my sister?" Simon asked.

"Sure did."

"Honest doc, he gonna make it?" Jayne asked.

"There're a lot of if's, but he has good chance if things go his way."

River held his hand tightly. She tried to hear his thoughts, but she couldn't hear anything. It scared her. She had always heard his thoughts. She had become accustom to hearing his voice floating around in her head. Without it, things seemed empty.

"You need to wake up and fight this. I know you can. I'm sorry. I knew about the snakes and the deceit, but not in time. If I had, maybe things would be different. I'm sorry…"

She felt his hand barely squeeze hers. He was there, but only just and she couldn't tell for how long. She put her head on his shoulder and tucked it under his neck, trying to avoid the large incision Simon had made. She listened to his heartbeat. She knew something was wrong. His heartbeat wasn't the same. She knew his heartbeat anywhere.

"SIMON!" she shouted. Everyone outside jumped. Simon scrambled into the room with Zoe hot on his heels.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"His heartbeat, it's wrong."

"What do you mean by 'wrong'?"

"I know it anywhere, just check."

Simon listened to his heartbeat and sure enough, it wasn't right. He also checked his breathing and it was off too.

"This might mean anemia. It occurs with blood loss. I need to test to see, but this only occurs with severe cases. It might be nothing, maybe even the trauma. I'll check to make sure."

Zoe walked over to River's side and placed her hand comfortingly on her shoulder. They shared a common feeling. They both loved Mal. He was their rock. Without him, life wouldn't be the same.

After the test, it was confirmed. He had anemia.

"What does that mean?" Zoe asked.

"I'll give him some vitamins. That should help. If it doesn't, he'll need a blood transfusion. This is the most I can do here. He needs a hospital."

"The closest hospital on this world is a few hours away, but I'm worried about being linked with the shootout."

"We might have to take that risk. Right now, River's blood and the vitamins are enough if it'll just be a day's journey."

"There's a world with some good facilities a day or so away."

"Let's go."

Zoe left quickly with a barked order to heat Serenity up. They took off shortly after that. Simon sat in the corner of the room, watching River and Mal intently. He wasn't about to leave again. He watched River caringly wipe some of the sweat off of his forehead with a cloth. He could see the love in her eyes. The man took _three _bullets for her. Maybe, maybe…he wasn't the worse guy in the world. If Mal always acted like that, then maybe he was wrong about him.

The day dragged on. River was feeling weaker. She had already given more blood than she should have. Yet every time Simon tried to get her to stop, she wouldn't let him anywhere near her. She drifted into a light sleep. He tried to take the line out then, but she swatted him away without even waking up. What woke her up was the sudden change in Mal's breathing. She sat up suddenly and looked down at him. His breathing was labored and sounded off. Simon noticed it too and was already listening to his chest. He heard extra heartbeats. _Cao, this can't be good. _He thought.

"What can't be good?" River asked.

"I think his heart is failing, left side. Sounds like fluid against the lung and the chest wall. I need to drain the fluid and operate. I can't wait until we get to the hospital." He ran to the intercom. "Zoe I need you down here."

"Can't. I have to fly this boat. What's happening?"

"His heart is failing."

"Ai ya."

Simon needed someone to help. River wasn't in the right state of mind. She was hugging Mal's head closely to her chest with tears in her eyes. He darted out into the common area to find Inara sitting there. She'd have to do.

"I need you to help me with surgery, _now_."

Inara didn't stop to think. She was up and at Mal's side before Simon was. She was never one for blood and guts, but this was Mal. She'd do whatever it took.

Simon put Mal to sleep and then got to work, reopening the chest again. The surgery was going pretty well, until something went wrong. Mal went into cardiac arrest. Simon tried to revive him, but it didn't work. He tried again and again. Inara was crying and so was River. Simon stopped. He had lost him. Malcolm Reynolds was dead. River wouldn't accept it. She grabbed his hand and then looked down at him.

"You aren't going anywhere. Remember? You told me that. You're a man of your word." She bent down and kissed him and whispered against his lips, "Come back."

To Simon and Inara's amazement, Mal got a pulse. A very weak one, but a pulse nevertheless. Inara couldn't believe that River's love brought him back. She decided right then and there to step aside. She couldn't fight love like that. And if Mal was happy and alive, that was enough for her.

Simon was able to finish the surgery successfully. For now, he was somewhat stable. River was out of blood to give, but they were only a few hours out of the hospital. Zoe had already set up the meet. They landed on the planet shortly after that. The medical crew was already waiting at the docks. Simon and River decided to be the two to go with him on the airlift to the hospital.

River grasped his hand tightly. She kissed his forehead and looked down at him once again. "Time to wake up."

Slowly, his eyes flickered open. He saw River smiling at him. "Five more minutes."

"Okay. Five more minutes. Don't stay away for long," she grinned.

"I ain't goin' anywhere, little one…"

Simon watched in amazement. They got to the hospital where Mal got a blood transfusion. Simon had patched him up pretty well considering. River never left his side. He woke up later that day. He felt River's lips against his before his eyes had even focused yet.

"Where am I?" he yawned.

"A hospital."

"I'm still alive."

"Yes you are."

"Where is everyone?"

"Outside waiting to come in."

"Bring 'em in."

"You up to it?"

"Everythin's shiny darlin' as long as I'm breathin' the same air as you."

She got up and got everyone to come in. She was on an IV herself, since she gave an unsafe amount of blood. Kaylee hugged him carefully, Jayne patted him roughly on the shoulder, Inara simply smiled, Simon nodded, and Zoe smiled with a simple sentiment. "Welcome back sir."

"It's good to be back."

"The doctors will only let two people in at a time, so some of us will have to leave." Simon said.

"That's a gorram shame," Mal sighed.

"It is sir. But we'll all take turns annoying you."

"Make sure that you do," Mal called after them. Simon hung back to talk to him.

"I wanted to thank you."

"Why you thankin' me, doc? You're the one that kept me alive 'till I got here I reckon."

"River had a part in that too. She gave you blood."

"You did? Maybe you aren't an albatross after all," he joked. River smiled and set her hand on his.

"Anyway, you took three bullets for her. And I just…I'm sorry. I believe that I misjudged you. I'd like to apologize for the trouble. And…" he swallowed hard. "I think that I can accept this."

Mal smiled widely, but not as wide as River was. "Thank you doc. That means a lot."

He nodded and then left River and Mal alone.

"You scared me, you know…" River began.

"I'm a mite sorry 'bout that, but you know that I always got you."

"I got you, too."

The end

_A/N:_

_I feel bad that the plan from Simon and Inara didn't have a bigger role, but when you think about it River would know about it…anyways thanks for reading! I hope you liked it!_


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